Houston Dynamo Lands Defender Aljaz Struna from Palermo

Aljaz Struna (23) in a duel with England's Jesse Lingard
Mandatory Credit: Photo by James Marsh/BPI/REX/Shutterstock

MLS teams are not wasting any time and have already started reinforcing their rosters for the 2019 season. One of the teams that were particularly active on the market lately was Houston Dynamo, and the team managed to complete its first significant signing on Monday by landing Slovenian defender Aljaz Struna from Italian side Palermo.

“Our top priority this offseason was to strengthen our defense with a key signing at center back, and Aljaz Struna fits the profile we were looking for,” – said Dynamo Senior Vice President and General Manager Matt Jordan. “He joins our club at a prime age with the quality, experience and winning mentality that will improve our group right away.“

Houston completed the deal using targeted allocation money to sign Struna, who will occupy the international roster spot on the team.

Aljaz Struna started his career in native Slovenia, before making a switch to Palermo in 2012. He ended up playing 58 games for the first team while scoring one goal. Struna is also Slovenian international, debuting in March 2012 and making 12 appearances so far.

“We are excited to bring a player like Aljaz Struna, who has experience playing in Europe and is in the prime of his career, to our team. He is a top defender, not only in Italy, but for his Slovenian national team, and we believe he will bring leadership on and off the field,” – said Dynamo head coach Wilmer Cabrera in a statement. “He wants to win with the Houston Dynamo, and he has accepted the challenge to play in MLS over other possibilities, and that shows his commitment to this league and to our club.”